2013/01/01 by Marie-Line Kühn, Anne Massire, Kuhn, Marie-Line +13
Agricultural and Biological Sciences · #Plant Pathogens and Resistance #Agriculture, Plant Science, Crop Management
paper · doi:10.17180/ban1-9868
Among Solanaceous crops, pepper and tomato are damaged by numerous pathogens, including Phytophthora capsici and Phytophthora infestans. Major genes have been identified in tomato to confer resistance against P. infestans, which were rapidly overcome by virulent populations. Pepper resistance towards P. capsici is provided by several quantitative trait loci (QTLs). Efficient exploitation of these polygenic resistance sources in plant breeding requires a good evaluation of their spectrum and durability. This implies a precise knowledge of the genetic and pathogenic diversity of pathogen populations and their adaptive potential. In this context, the establishment of core-collections that would reflect the overall intraspecific diversity of Phytophthora spp. would be useful to assess the a priori durability of resistance sources. The results of the research conducted at INRA reveal the limitations of such a strategy: it may be efficiently developed only locally, requires more knowledge on the structure and epidemiological characteristics of natural pathogen populations, and mainly relies on robust strain storage protocols.